How to Persuade People Who Don't Want to be Persuaded

Make Them Look and Listen

Step right up! How long can I juggle? What’s under my hat? Don’t take your eyes off my hands! Intrigued already? That is an "infotainment" teaser, an evocation of one of the most effective persuasive tactics, the "Theatrical Persuasion Model." It is based on the tactics of the world’s greatest persuaders: carnival barkers, gamblers, magicians and sideshow hypnotists. Their time-tested customer luring methods work for a simple reason: if they did not work, the person wooing customers at the street fair did not eat. That reality check helped these entertainers develop a very attention-getting approach. Their pitches were often effective, entertaining, amusing and emotional. By establishing a bridge directly to people’s feelings, these performers created a fertile environment for persuasion.

Build a persuasive bridge to any audience by devising your own "Transformation Mechanism," the label for any demonstration or device that wins the audience’s attention. Once you get the audience involved, your Transformation Mechanism serves as a link to your main message. It sets the stage for your major points. To put people in a receptive mental state ...